1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to suction devices for collecting small objects.
2. Prior Art
Beads are often used in crafts. People who frequently handle beads know that picking them up or sorting them by hand one at a time is extremely tedious. Although some siphon devices are known in the prior art for sorting fish eggs, they are not suited for picking up beads.
One such fish egg siphon device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,476,425 to McLeary. It is comprised of a bottle with a stopper in its mouth. A pickup tube and a discharge tube are inserted through the stopper. The rigid discharge tube is directed downwardly. A valve and a squeeze bulb are connected to the distal end of the discharge tube. The bulb is pumped to start the siphon action for drawing water and fish eggs into the bottle. A screen at the inner end of the discharge tube prevents the eggs from leaving the bottle. The discharge tube is long enough to extend below the lowest possible position of the pickup tube, otherwise the siphon action cannot occur.
Another fish egg siphon device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,843,499 to Walcott. It is comprised of a squeeze bulb attached directly to the mouth of a bottle. A rigid pickup tube is attached to one end of the bulb, and a discharge tube is attached to an opposite end of the bulb. Siphon action is started by squeezing the bulb. Again, the discharge tube must be long enough to extend below the pickup tube. The inner end of the discharge tube is pierced to serve as a screen for preventing the eggs from leaving the bottle.
Yet another fish egg siphon device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,759,729 to Berger. It is comprised of a cap attached to the mouth of a bottle. A rigid pickup tube is attached to an intake channel in the cap. A squeeze bulb is integrally attached to the cap, and connected to a discharge channel in the cap. A discharge tube is attached to the distal end of the bulb, and is extended to a position below the pickup tube. The bulb is squeezed to start the siphon action. A tiny screen is positioned at the inner end of the discharge channel for blocking fish eggs.
Prior art siphon devices work well for picking up fish eggs in water, but they cannot pick up beads on a table or floor because siphon action cannot occur without water. Further, the screens are each comprised of holes pierced through the inner end of the discharge tube, which is relatively expensive to manufacture. The screens also have small surface areas that can easily become clogged.